


i'd probably still love you with your hands around my neck.

by waytothedawn



Category: Critical Role (Web Series)
Genre: Choking, Friends With Benefits, Lack of Communication, Light Bondage, M/M, Multi, Unhealthy Relationships, friends with benefits to tolerating each other because one of you is kind of a dickhead to lovers, if u think i'm tagging everyone in this fic you're a god diddly darn fool, warnings for later chapters???
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-09-11
Updated: 2017-09-11
Packaged: 2018-12-26 10:10:50
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,737
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12056790
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/waytothedawn/pseuds/waytothedawn
Summary: percy and vax don't have a perfect relationship, but they're working on it.they swear.(they're just very bad at the whole, being in a relationship thing.)





	i'd probably still love you with your hands around my neck.

**Author's Note:**

  * For [woahrebecca](https://archiveofourown.org/users/woahrebecca/gifts).



> this massive fic is the result of critical role rarepair week, starting last sunday! i can't really do shorter fics so this monster is what i have to give. 
> 
> also shoutout to bec for egging me on to actually do this
> 
> and i'm sorry about vax's underwear, but not really.

Percy and Vax have always had the strangest of relationships in Vox Machina, which is saying something when Grog and Scanlan’s favorite pastime is to go get laid together. Friends one moment, then ready to start a fight the next (well mostly Vax) and back to laughing once more. 

 

But things start getting stranger between them after they arrive back from Vasselheim, before everything goes to hell. 

 

-

 

Quietly, Vax had broken off what might have been with Gilmore, finally getting the courage--ironic, for the first person to jump into a fight--to be honest and speak with Keyleth about his feelings for her. 

 

Needless to say, it doesn't go well. She tries to let him down gently, but her gentleness towards nature still has yet to to translate to talking with actual people; he's not mad, really, just a little sad. Mostly for hurting Shaun, but he won't run back and take back what he did. God knows he could do better than a man who does nothing but almost get himself killed whenever there's a serious battle. 

 

More than anything else, he's upset with himself. He rarely opens up like this and he managed to fuck up his relationship with two of his favorite people in the period of a few days. Next, he’ll make his own twin want to shoot an arrow between his eyes. 

 

(But, he knows Vex would never hate him. That much is a comfort.) 

 

-

 

Percival Frederickstein Von Musel Klossowski de Rolo III rarely gets truly drunk--the best word for what happens is probably, pardon his language, shitfaced--on Vox Machina’s excursions in the various taverns and pubs around Emon or anywhere else they're currently staying. 

 

But tonight is a special occasion. For they’ve just come back from Vasselheim and his heart is in more pieces than before they left; it's petty and stupid to be so childishly heartbroken over seeing Vex with someone that isn't him, but all the same he's upset. He can't blame her for being smitten over their new, dragon slaying friend and comrade as a result of the Slayer’s Take, for Zahra is a lot of woman to handle--she's got a tail for fuck’s sake--and Vex loves nothing more than to have her hands full of everything she can enjoy. 

 

Percy is thankful he has the right mind about him not to say a word about his own crush, and instead remains her closest friend. It's enough. 

 

Yet, all the same, he's delightfully and very drunk as he saunters--even barely able to walk properly, a de Rolo still must have a modicum of grace about him--over to Vax, brooding in the corner. 

 

“Vax’ildan!” Percy practically falls over and knocks the table forward. “Come, join me! Have some fun!” 

 

“I think you need to walk it off, Freddie--” Percy makes a rather displeased face, obviously not enjoying the nickname. “--We still need to walk all the way back to Greyskull and or another bar.” And knowing how much Pike and Grog could take, they’ll be out until nearly first light. 

 

“Then, I believe you should  _ personally _ escort me back home.” The point is emphasized when Percy narrowly avoids falling over while sitting down. “Keep me out of trouble.” That makes Vax roll his eyes, and give a deep sigh. 

 

“You are far more trouble sober, Percy.”

 

“I try very hard to be.” The white haired man smiles softly. “Be that as it may, I'd much like to get back before I do something I regret--” They both hear cheers from Keyleth and Grog about firewater, and that's motivation enough to leave. “--like  **that** .” 

 

“You make a fair point, let's head home,  _ Whitey.”  _ Percy makes another, more disappointed face, as they say their good nights and head out into the still bustling streets of Emon. 

 

-

 

The keep is a good distance away from the middle of the city where their pub crawl landed them, but it's time enough for them both to sober up enough not to end up asleep on the side of the road; Percy sticks to Vax’s side like glue, almost hyper-aware of the fact that he's very there and looking out for him. The closeness isn't terrible--Percy barely makes it to his shoulders in height and leans on him as they walk--but the other man is eerily silent, almost lost in thought as they make their way back. 

 

It isn't until he's at Percy’s door, that he finally speaks up. 

 

“…You should stay a while.” It doesn't come out nearly as confident as he'd intended--mostly due to the fact that he was relying on liquid courage and only ended up rather drunk and incoherent until they'd made their way back--but it is genuine; Vax gives him a look, halfway between confusion and curiosity. 

 

“Well I do live here, so I plan to.”

 

“No, with me.  _ In my room. _ ” He really doesn't want to so clearly  **state** his intentions, but… 

 

“I get it.”  _ What I don't get is why you dragged me back here.  _ “I thought you didn't want to do anything you'd regret.”  _ This isn't like you, Percy.  _

 

“I assure you that you aren't something I'd regret doing, Vax.” 

 

“ _ Someone's  _ been spending too much time around Scanlan. If I didn't know better, I'd say you're trying to  _ seduce  _ me.” And doing a miserable job of it, but he’ll give the man the benefit of the doubt. 

 

“No, what I'm trying to do is a little more…simple.” Percy rubs the back of his neck, and leans against the door of his bedroom, trying to find the right words; he probably should've had a little less if he was going to try and make a more convincing proposal. “The others might not be back for quite a while and, well, we’re alone here sans the hired help…” 

 

(God, don't make him say it out loud, he’ll seem desperate. Well, he  **_is_ ** but he's a man of pride.)

 

“You…cannot be serious.” The half elf tangles his fingers in his own bangs, half mystified and half ready to smack the other in the mouth. “You're asking, me of all people, to f--”

 

“In many more words that are trying desperately to be a little more subtle.” There's a genuine blush that comes to his cheeks. “It's the first time in weeks we’ve really had a free moment to ourselves, after all.”

 

“Why not ask Grog or Scanlan,”  _ Or literally anyone else who doesn't want to occasionally want to smack you upside the head for being dumb for someone so smart.  _ “Who probably are more partial to the idea of a fling?”

 

“Do you want me to  _ break _ ?” That gets a good laugh out of the both of them, at the very least. “I don’t know what’s worse, him actually breaking me in two or finding out whatever he hide under that glorified loincloth of his.” More laughter. “God knows where, what and who Scanlan’s been in.” 

 

“I’m sure, either way, it’d be a good tavern story.” Another chuckle. “Now, please tell me you’ve been joking.”

 

“I-I’m afraid not. I’m always quite serious on this.” Vax looks Percy in the eyes, studying his expression carefully; having a bit of fun during a night of drinking is one thing, but he knows one thing about the man: he never deigns to suggest something like this unless he’s thought it over and over again. “Just not necessarily coming out quite right at the moment. I still would enjoy spending the night with you--if you’d let me.”

 

There’s a nagging feeling in the back of the raven haired man’s mind, that he can’t quite place, but he ignores it.  _ Oh why not.  _ He can’t help but indulge this, honestly, it’s a win-win. And fucking with Mr. Calm, Cool and Collected is a once in a lifetime opportunity, after all. 

 

“Alright.” He puts up a finger before the shorter man can speak. “I’m going to take off my armor and put away the rest of the arsenal for the night. You do the same, and I will be back in fifteen minutes; if you’re still conscious by then, we’ll have a good time.” Percy simply nods, and they go off to their respective rooms. 

 

Needless to say, Percy undresses himself a little more frantically than he probably needs to, but he still takes his time to fix up the place a bit--it’s bare, unsurprisingly, seeing as what he owned were tools for the most part and they were all downstairs where they belonged--even though it’s pitch black and he has no plans to put on any lights, he still feels slightly awkward. No one comes in his room for the most part, unless it’s for a favor or they're heading out for another adventure, so inviting someone inside felt so foreign and--

 

Ugh, he’s overthinking this. 

 

Sure, he’s never done this before but it’s just an urge. Just roll with it if Vax actually takes him up on the offer and hope he isn’t particularly embarrassing throughout. 

 

The quietest of footsteps interrupt his thoughts--it’s a miracle that he hears anything at all, but the rogue lets himself be heard when he wants to be, after all--and he almost jumps out of his skin because  _ oh god this is really really happening _ . He nearly turns on his heels, but Vax is already behind him. 

 

“You don’t need to try and sneak up on  _ me,  _ you know. I invited you here.” 

 

“And miss you getting spooked? Never.” Vax lazily rests his head on Percy’s shoulder--he has to scooch down a bit, it strikes him funny--before his hands, ahem, wander a bit. “Now, just to double check, you’re sure about this?” 

 

“Very.” A shudder goes down his spine, as Vax undoes the buttons on his vest, before tugging at and untucking his undershirt. “You needn’t worry so much, I’m not a fragile flower. I don’t break easy.”

 

“We’ll see about that, soon enough.” The half-elf simply grins, mentally noting that he should definitely go on and test that claim right away; his fingers gently graze across the bare bit of skin now exposed, and Percy practically falls into the man behind him, a soft gasp escaping his lips. “Just remember, you asked for this.”

 

“Stop being a tease, and fuck me already.” There’s a mix of irritation and impatience in his voice, and the slightest hint of begging. Vax quite likes that last part. 

 

“What happened to subtlety, dear Percival?”

 

“I believe it went out the door  _ when you so kindly started undressing me.” _

 

“That, is me merely being helpful. However, this--” There's a small gasp as Vax’s hand moves over the crotch of the others pants, gingerly groping him through the fabric. “--is more like it.” There's but a quiet, but approving, moan of agreement. It continues for a few, arduous moments, before the white haired man is turned around, and slowly moved back towards his own bed. Vax, brings a finger to his lips before pushing him down onto the bed; despite the darkness in the room, Percy watches in what can only be described as awe, as he feels the weight of the other man on top of him, straddling his hips. There’s the ghost of a sentence on his tongue as he feels his glasses being taken off, and gently hears them being placed on his nightstand.  _ How considerate.  _

 

Now there’s hands at his throat, deftly undoing the knot of his ascot, and Percy finally feels his body relax a little bit--until he feels the soft silk being tied around his  _ eyes.  _ There’s a distinct moment of panic before his common sense kicks in as he realizes that he already can’t see due to how dark it is and his now missing glasses  _ and _ that he’s mildly into wherever this is starting to go. His hands start to wander, gently resting on the other’s hips, not daring to push any boundaries without permission.

 

(The white haired man really doesn’t know what he’s supposed to do in this position, really, so he’s just going to follow Vax’s lead and hope he doesn’t make a fool of himself.) 

 

“Relax, Percival. You're not going to enjoy it when you look like you're being put to the sword.” It's amusing that the person who specifically asked for this encounter was the one all tense about it; there's a moment where Vax wonders if Percy’s in the dark--more than literally--on the whole intimacy thing, but he doesn't linger on the idea. “Just, for once in your life, don't think about it.”

 

“Easy for you to say.” He grimaced, before smirking. “You're the very best at not thinking sometim--” He's cut off by fingers tangling into and pulling on his hair. Oops. 

 

“You know, I was going to go easy on you but you've so kindly changed my mind.” Vax doesn't let another word get out as his lips crash into Percy’s, and pushes the man under him forcefully on his back; the kiss is more teeth than lips, more(feigned) anger than passion, but it does the trick as the quiet is only broken by the soft sounds of lips on lips, and quieter moans occasionally escaping the gunslinger’s mouth. 

 

One of the rogue’s hands releases from the other’s hair, and attempts to undo the buttons on Percy’s shirt, before just ripping at it until the distinct sound of buttons hitting the floor are heard and a soft, annoyed, groan comes soon after. His lips further down now that the pale skin is exposed, and Percy finally gets a breath of air after what felt like hours of being kissed. It takes a few moment, but he manages to get enough bearing to start taking off both his own shirt that is so lovingly  _ ruined  _ now, and attempts to get Vax’s shirt off; it’s a miserable and futile effort before he keeps getting pushed down again and a again, so he gives up and settles for sliding his hands further downward, lingering at the waistband of the man’s pants. 

 

There's a not even a moment of hesitation this time, as Percy’s calloused fingers trace the outline of the other’s hips--the skin is soft, and he has restrain the urge to take his fingernails across it--and he realizes there's, ahem, something missing from this picture. 

 

Oh,  _ Vax’ildan _ , you’re terrible. 

 

He's about to do something, but the thought is all too quickly thrown from his mind as he is painfully reminded of how inexplicably, and uncomfortably turned on he currently is; the transient friction he's able to get with the man on top of his isn't enough to satisfy him, so his hands squeeze between his and Vax’s hot bodies, trying to feel for the belt of his pants. His hand is grabbed (well more like, smacked) before he can make any real headway, however. The weight on his body shifts, ever so purposefully, before he feels hands undoing his belt, and then the buttons on his pants. 

 

There’s a sigh of relief, the unpleasant pressure on his aching, burning--he’s suddenly very glad that his eyes are bound, because he doesn’t think he can properly handle whatever look there is in the rogue’s eyes as he fully undresses him; all that he hopes is that he everything but disappointed, but the feeling of hands on his body reassures him that he shouldn’t worry too much. 

 

As he feels Vax get off of him entirely, he sits up, and undoes the knot of the fabric around his eyes, and is reminded of oh so very naked he is. 

 

Completely exposed. 

 

And he can see the faintest silhouette of the other man’s slowly undressing body, and he’s suddenly really mad he can’t see in the dark. The atmosphere is perfect, and he really doesn’t want to ruin that with a light or two but this isn’t nearly as fun when he can’t see  _ shit.  _

 

“Vax?”

 

“Yes?”

 

“Mind if I, uh, light a candle? I’d very much like to, ahem, see you.” He coughs. “Or anything, for that matter.” There’s a small amused noise that gets closer as he feels the weight on his mattress shift, and then there is the smallest bit of light from his nightstand; the dim light illuminates the both of their faces, and it’s a bit overwhelming to see that Vax is closer than he originally thought to him, and his hair is down, framing his face and, and--

 

“You are painfully beautiful.” He manages to get out, putting his glasses on again to get a better picture. He  _ really  _ didn’t account for the near chill down his spine that seeing Vax would give him, but he’s genuinely--and pleasantly--surprised.

 

“Flattery, Percival, will get you everywhere--if you hadn’t already gotten to where you want to be already.” He raises a finger, and gives Percy a small tap on the nose. “If you’re a mess now, you’re going to  **_break_ ** in a bit.” That makes all the blood in the white haired man’s head rush to his cheeks (and elsewhere, obviously). 

 

“O-oh.”  _ Percival de Rolo you are in over your fucking head.  _ “...I have no idea what to do here, honestly.”  _ Smooth, asshole.  _

 

“Just follow my lead, and for the love of god, stop  _ thinking _ .” It’s not fun if Percy is so self-conscious it stops him from enjoying this little fling. He pulls the both of them into a kiss--this time he feels hands tangle in his own hair and he smiles--less hesitant and a little more frantic due to the contact of skin against skin; they push down onto the bed again, a little louder than before, all worries about being caught lost in each other’s embrace for the moment. 

 

Percy is gentle, fingers tracing the outline of Vax’s body and careful not to do anything out of line just yet; the closeness alone is enough to satiate his hunger for now, even though he desperately wants to go further (Vax is being a bit of tease and as fun as it is, he just wants to get off at some point tonight).

 

However, Vax is an asshole.

 

His nails rake across the soft--but occasionally scarred--skin of Percy’s back, leaving red marks that smart and bleed just ever so faintly that it makes the white haired man flinch and proceed to dig his (finely manicured and rather **_sharp_** ) nails into the half elf’s ass. It continues for a few more breaths, before Vax is satisfied with his own handiwork and one of his hands moves between both of their bodies and his fingers hover over his prize, hesitantly. 

 

“You okay? We could stop here, if you’d like.” Percy’s breathing a bit heavily, and he’s not sure if it’s in a good way or not quite yet. 

 

“ _ Please _ .” It’s genuine begging now, whatever little bit of pride that was stopped him before is gone with his clothing. “I appreciate the consideration, but you’re killing me here. I haven’t the stamina to do this forever, you know.”

 

Vax just nods, his fingers gingerly wrapping around Percy’s length and he strokes, gently, slowly and carefully to gauge the other’s expression--and it’s pure bliss. It’s second only to the twins sneaking into his workshop while he’s tinkering away at a new idea and there’s a certain satisfaction (almost like he’s won a prize) in knowing that he’s the cause. It’s barely a few seconds before he has to slow his pace even further lest he finish things a little too quickly for either of their liking. 

 

Vax reaches over the side of the bed, quickly looking for his long forgotten clothing and searching his pants for what he’d originally gone to his room to get in the first place; there’s a moment of confusion when he puts it beside the two of them, but it clicks into place soon enough for Percy, and he awkwardly waits for some sort of instruction on what he should do other than be very confused (and turned on, but that’s a given by now). He adjusts their positions a bit, before speaking once more. 

 

“Now, I really need you to relax, or this will be...difficult.” 

 

“Just be gentle, for I am a fragile blossom in the wind, dear.” He feels a playful and gentle smack across his face, and he smiles. “Leaving me beyond repair is going to be  _ far  _ more of a challenge to explain in the morning.”

 

“Please go back to begging and moaning so I don’t regret not using your scarf to cover something  _ else _ , de Rolo.” He sighs, and pulls them back into another kiss, more of a distraction as he works on loosening up the other man just a bit; there’s a few surprised noises that come out of him in the process, but he’s cooperative enough that it only takes a few moments of coaxing before he can pull away satisfied. Vax takes a moment to stare at Percy a bit, and smiles a bit. “You’re quite the catch yourself, I hope you know.” He doesn’t even get a word out of the other man, because Percy immediately turns his head to hide the flush that’s come in full force to his face once again. 

 

Vax takes the initiative, pulling Percy closer to him, getting ready to--well he was getting ready for something, but the pounding of footsteps down the hall stops the both of them in their tracks. They look to each other for a moment, trying to wordlessly figure out what the hell they should do in  _ this  _ situation. Percy just presses his index finger to his lips as there’s the lightest rapping on the bedroom door, before it opens, ever so slightly.

 

(The candle next to them is blown out, Vax slides down onto the other side of the bed and Percy throws )

 

“Ah, Percy? You still awake?” It’s Pike, bless her heart.

 

“Just about to go to bed, actually. Is everyone finally back for the night?”

 

“Yeah! Most of them already passed out, and Vex was worried about the two of you after you left earlier…and Vax isn’t anywhere I looked.”

 

“He went for a walk a little while ago, I believe. He should be back soon.” He smiles when he sees her face peek through the door. “Make sure to drink some water before you go rest, you all were going pretty hard earlier.” It’s a genuine concern, and there’s a reminder that he should take his own advice after he’s done with his, ahem, work here. She laughs a little bit, nodding. 

 

“Well, tell him on his walk back up from under your bed, that this’ll be a secret between the three of us until you want me to say otherwise.” She smiles, an all too knowing look in her eyes as she walks away and closes the door. Percy all too often forgets, how genuinely terrifying how the little cleric can and will be...well, so long as she doesn’t say a word (and she won’t, secrets are best kept with Pike, after all) it should be fine. 

 

“You going to hide under my bed all night, or am I going to have to drag you out?” There’s the sound of someone very loudly banging their head, and Vax emerges once more. 

 

“Why are there multiple guns under your bed?”

 

“In case of emergency. I’m not going to put it under my pillow like a madman.” Percy shrugs in the direction of where he hears the other’s voice coming from. Vax laughs, and makes his way onto the bed once more, and under the covers with Percy; if they’re going to get caught again, might as well spare everyone the full picture. 

 

They get back in the rhythm they were trying to keep before--there’s a couple of very loud, panicked noises that come out of Percival as they try at first, and Vax has to cover his mouth a couple times--slow, but steady enough that they’re both enjoying it.

 

(It’s been a  _ long  _ time since Vax was with anyone, so he has to pace himself with someone who’s never been with anyone, it seems. That, and he doesn’t want to try and explain too much as to why the other man is limping tomorrow morning.)

 

“Vax,  _ please _ , slow down a bit--I’m not going to last--” Percy’s breaths and words are ragged, and with each movement it’s taking every bit of his already fragile stamina not to ruin his bedsheets this very moment; only  _ Percival de Rolo _ , would fucking worry about having to explain to the servants why his sheets were suddenly in  **dire** need of cleaning after a secret tryst with his comrade, get a grip man. 

 

“Are you really sure you want me to slow down?” There’s not even a hint of teasing in his voice this time, as he stops entirely in his tracks and Percy shudders noticeably beneath him, taking in a few shallow breaths. 

 

“...Maybe not. This is--” He looks up at the shadow that he guesses is Vax, he can’t see anything now that they blew their only light out, trying to focus through the haze that his thoughts have become over the course of the night. “--A lot more,  _ stimulation  _ than I’m used to.” Mental is what he lives for, yes, but all this touching and contact is a bit much all at once, but all the same it’s nice to feel so wanted, even if it’s only for a night. “It's still good, don't doubt that much.”

 

“The fact I've managed to silence the man of a thousand carefully thought out words for a night is  _ all _ the reassurance I'll ever need.” There's a shift, and he feels the other kissing him once more, this time all the more tender and genuinely affectionate; it’s distracting enough that they start moving together once more, even as there’s the smallest of protests coming from Percy, quiet and half hearted enough that he quickly gives up. 

 

They stay like that for a few minutes, pace slower and gentler for the sake of the fragile flower that is Percival de Rolo all of a sudden, but impatience takes hold of Vax’ildan as he pulls away from a still frazzled and now mildly confused Percy; he gets up on his elbows to look vaguely in the direction of Vax’s face, but the feeling of a hand starting to stroke him quickly freezes him in place, unable to say whatever was on the tip of his tongue. 

 

In a fraction of a section he lets out the quietest moan of pleasure, before moving his head forward at the precisely most terrible moment, before getting an eyeful of, well, himself. 

 

The room is eerily silent for a few ticks, both a little unsure what exactly to say. 

 

(Moreso Percy, because Vax is just contemplating what smartass comment he’s about to make to someone who just did  _ that _ .)

 

“Always hitting your mark, eh?”

 

“Please don’t say anything else.”

 

“Had your  _ eye _ on the prize there, did you?”

 

“Ugh, get me something to get--” He angrily waves one of his hands a bit. “-- _ this  _ off of my face.” He would be fine with the whole situation sans the last couple of seconds, but it fades from his mind when Vax gently cleans his face well enough that he can calm down and fall back into the bed once more, relishing in the afterglow, if only for a moment. 

 

It takes a moment for it to hit Percy that Vax is, most likely, not done with him for the night and it sends a chill down his spine; it’s a very  _ attractive  _ offer indeed, but he somehow doubt he’ll be able to really keep up. 

 

“Ready for round two, De Rolo, or do you keep to sleep it off already?” The moonlight manages to hit Vax’s face enough to highlight his smirk, and Percy just gives him a defiant look--he’s not losing this (is it even a competition? Why is he so angry about it?) in the least.

 

(Needless to say, though, he’s the one having to bite his pillow an hour later, so all of Vox Machina isn’t woken by the screams of an overwhelmingly pleased man.)

 

\- 

 

Morning comes far too quickly for Percy, the bright rays of the sun hitting him right in the pupils as he comes to a very tired and groggy semblance of consciousness, his body strewn in an awkward sleeping pose now that they other person he’d shared it with was long gone. There’s a feeling of frustration in that Vax hadn’t even stood long enough to give him a good morning--he reminds himself that people don’t usually stay the night if they’re just doing to do that--but he shrugs it off as he feels a bit of paper crunch beneath his head. 

 

“How kind, he left a note at least…” He grabs behind him, pulling on his glasses--wait, he doesn’t remember taking them off, or...much of the second half of the night, for that matter--and reading it. 

 

It’s in Elven. 

 

_ Asshole. _

 

**_Had a wonderful night, Freddie. Don’t try getting up too fast in the morning or I’ll have to call the good doctor for you. - V_ **

 

He almost wants to roll his eyes, but even moving a little too fast to put the note in his bedside table sends his hungover and exhausted head for a loop and he has to take a moment to steady himself enough to get dressed and go downstairs for breakfast and...multiple cups of very strong coffee.

 

The stairs aren’t too precarious once he’s woken up a bit--well, his ass hurts a bit, but that’s a given and should be fine if he doesn’t sit too long--and he makes his way to a room of equally hungover people, along with Grog who’s right as rain. 

 

(Vax isn’t there at the moment, and he’s a bit thankful. He’s not sure 

 

He gets a cup of coffee and sits down with a wince, before anyone says a word. 

 

“You left rather early last night, you missed out on all the fun!” Keyleth throws an arm around Percy’s shoulders, still her bubbly self in spite of everything. “Grog and I got in a fight with a mercenary with a big lizard and…” Percy only half pays attention, sipping on his coffee and actively avoiding eye contact with Pike across the table, with a piercing look of approval that genuinely concerns him. 

 

She simply nods at him, and he knows she’s not going to say anything but it’s still a bit, embarrassing to have someone else know about this. 

 

At least it’s not, like, Grog who would scream it at the top of his lungs for years to come and Percy would have to change his name, move to Marquet and find a new life only to be tracked down again never to live it down all over again.

 

The morning continues on, with a reenactment of last night with wild shapes and all, and still no sign of Vax for breakfast--Percy isn’t sure if that’s a good or a bad sign as of yet, but he’ll simply talk to the man later on if necessary. 

 

If he could find him, of course, that’s the fun part.

 

\- 

 

It’s evening now, and Percy is fine tuning the recoil of Bad News--when they had the carpet, he was nearly flung off of it and a weapon is worthless if it’s gonna kill him on his perch--in his workshop, when he hears quiet footsteps again, and he didn’t even move to look at Vax, until he’s sitting beside him on the bench. 

 

“Hello, Percival. Feeling alright?” Percy has to stop his work, what it Vax laying his head on his good shoulder. 

 

“I should ask you the same thing, I haven’t seen you all day.” There’s no malice in his voice. “Was I so bad I scared you off?”

“Nah, I was just sleeping until later than you. I didn’t leave for an hour or two after you fell asleep, anyway.” Percy has to look away, the slightest blush coming to his face at the idea of Vax checking up on him. It’s endearing at the very least. “Nevertheless, I came down here to make a proposition to you, involving our bit of fun from last night.”

 

“Oh?”

 

“How about we make that a...regular thing. No dating or anything, but if you or I are in the mood at night, we could just stroll on over to each other’s rooms when no one’s looking and be quiet about everything…” Vax is so surprisingly nonchalant about it all, he catches Percy off guard for a moment. “And Pickle ain’t gonna say a word, she pinky promised me.” 

 

“P-pinky promised?” He loves Pike dearly, but whatever friendship she and Vax had could be straight up strange sometimes. “What, between you, her and Sarenrae that she wouldn’t give us up?”

 

“Yes, actually. She even said she’d heal up the mess that your back is at the moment.” A gentle pat makes Percy wince a little, reminding him of all the scratches that are currently smarting, only occasionally. “Win-win, yeah?”

 

Percy has to study Vax’s expression for a solid minute or two, wondering if he’s being serious or not; he’s been on the end of many a prank of the half elf’s in the past year and change of knowing him, but he seems serious enough. 

 

“So long as this is our little secret, Vax.”

 

“As long as you keep it, Freddie.”

 

“Alright, on the condition you  _ stop fucking calling me that _ , it’s very not sexy.” Percy grimaces, it’s his father’s name for god’s sake. “I’ll even let you properly tie me up next time.”

 

“Oooh, you drive a hard bargain, Percival.” There’s a hungry look in Vax’s eyes as he says that, and Percy is slightly concerned (read: the tiniest kind of turned on and almost a little terrified) but all for it. 

 

“Shake on it?”

 

“Absolutely.” They shake, and Vax awkwardly looks around for a moment, before speaking again. “So, what if we….right here…”

  
“We are  _ not  _ fucking in my workshop.”

**Author's Note:**

> i hope you enjoyed! i'm planning to have chapters for the most important arcs/events, so uh, stay tuned. 
> 
>  
> 
> (also you can find me on tumblr as excaptressentiment and twitter @meteorcrashes!!)


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